RH Jones: Message for Norton school board re: HC for retired teachers

From RH Jones, February 21, 2008
Subject: Re: CORE Suggested Rebuttal for The Akron Beacon Journal Letter Published from Linda B Kersker, President, Akron Board of Education

Cindy,

Can't you see that it will cost Norton more if the older higher paid teachers stay on for several more years each.. Being older, they will take more sick days. Insurance costs Norton more for elderly teachers. No educator in his or her right mind would retire without health care when they have it on the job. For retired teachers, there is no dental, eye, or a compounded COLA either. Most districts promised health care in writing. Have we sued any districts yet?

As to where the Norton schools will get the money, where were you and the other conservative school board members, who dominate the school boards throughout Ohio, when for-profit schools took money away from public schools? End this take-away and Norton will have the money. Demand your OSBA put out the real facts. They have misled you and the others on the Norton Bd. Besides, as I see it, the Norton Bd. votes in a block. There are no independent thinkers. Almost every parent on my street drives their children to school. Perhaps if a study were made as to seat occupancy in school buses, we could do with fewer or smaller buses. That could help the budget.

Further, narrow minded conservatives have forced divestiture onto the backs of our STRS. It takes hundreds of hours of STRS employee time to deal with this burden. Why didn't the conservatives force divestiture on Wall Street stocks? Conservatives have sent all kinds of unfunded mandates, such as NCLB, onto the backs of school districts. Where was the OSBA on this? Do away with false accusations and the making of a scapegoat out of public schools and more federal and state dollars will come pouring in.

There are a lot of retired teachers who live in Norton. Do not expect me to vote for a school levy ever again. The STRS health care funds will soon dry up. I, then, will no longer be able to support levies, as I have in the past. Many retired educators are computer literate and keep up with the real facts. We can not be ignored. We do vote, even in nursing homes.

RHJones, Norton voter

From Cindy Webel, February 21, 2008
Subject: Re: core Suggested Rebuttal for The Akron Beacon Journal Letter Published from Linda B Kersker, President, Akron Board of Education

Hi,

Exactly where are the school systems supposed to come up with this extra money? When fully implemented it will cost our district around $250,000 more a year. That is 1 mill in our school system. On average it takes our district 5-7 times to pass an operating levy. I have a daughter that is a teacher and I know the system needs help but until this state gets funding fixed we just can't afford this kind of increase. Again we are asked to make more gold with less straw.

Cindy Webel Norton

[Sent from Bob Jones to Cindy Webel, February 21, 2008]:

Suggested Rebuttal for The Akron Beacon Journal Letter Published from Linda B. Kersker, President, Akron Board of Education

Point by point Rebuttal

1. "Currently, employers contribute 14 percent and employees contribute 10 percent of payroll to pay for retirement benefits."

Rebuttal: These percentages have not changed in 23 years. The STRS Health Care program cannot be sustained without additional revenue. The principal in the healthcare fund will start to be used sometime in 2008.

2. "As members of the Akron school board, we oppose any such increase in costs to school districts."

Rebuttal: If the additional 2.5 percent increase is not phased in over the five year period as called for by HB 315, then most teachers will not be able to retire because they will have no or limited healthcare on their own. There is no retirement without healthcare. Educators will have no choice, but to continue teaching far into their 60's, 70's, or even 80's. School districts across the state will have an aging staff at the top of the salary schedule with increasing healthcare needs. These teachers will have built up a lot of sick leave which they will use at the cost to the district. This will not be good for education, and may cost FAR MORE than the estimated monthly average cost of $40 per teacher. Forget buyouts. Few could afford to accept them no matter how generous they might be. Teachers on average pay more than $1000 a year to supply their classroom. This will have to stop. This all means a budgeting nightmare for school boards, and points out how shortsighted the Akron School Board's thinking is. It is either pay a little now, or pay much more later.

3. "Additional mandated costs, if approved, would not put more teachers in the classroom, buy textbooks, or implement new programs, rather, they would go directly to STRS for retiree benefits."

Rebuttal: The increase will go only to healthcare for retirees. For years educators were promised a great retirement by the state, and school boards, in exchange for low salaries. There is no retirement without healthcare. Few realize that teachers don't automatically qualify for Medicare part A. Many never paid into Social Security while teaching, and those who did, via other employment, don't get a full benefit, which means about $90 a month at best.

4. "Instead of asking school districts, already struggling under many financial constraints, to provide additional funding, STRS should take a responsible look at its own retirement and health-care benefits."

Rebuttal: STRS has been tightening its belt for years. Consider, we cut benefit checks by an average of nearly $3,400 a year (no thirteenth check), cut the subsidy for spouses, and family members' healthcare premiums. Spouses now must pay 100 % of their premiums. Retirees, with the best coverage still pay 48% of their total healthcare bills. Drug and deductibles are annually raised. Hundreds of retirees' pensions are between $20,000 and $29,000 a year. STRS is prohibited by the ORC from raising its 1.9% to the Healthcare Stabilization Fund because it has a much greater than 30 year unfunded liability.

5. "Demographics such as life expectancy and the number of years people are expected to remain in the work force have changed since the current benefit structure was put in place."

Rebuttal: This is exactly why we need a dedicated budget and stable revenue source for educators' healthcare. Teachers are already working longer and living longer. The percentages from active teachers and school boards have not changed in 23 years. Passage of this legislation avoids forcing a lot of seniors onto Medicaid, and a nightmare for the state. HB 315 is the right thing to do.

From CORE (Concerned Ohio Retired Educators)
David K. Parshall, President